Perihelion
by Piixiefawn
Summary: A young Blade of Marmora agent's life is changed forever when he meets a strange girl. Why does he feel so drawn to her and eager to protect her? Together, they'll work to help Katie regain her memories and find their way in this expansive universe. Voltron!AU. Slow burn Kidge.
1. Chapter 1

Now or never. That's the kind of person he was. A quick thinking, get the job done sort of person. That's why Keith hated these sort of missions. They were tedious, uncomfortable, and sometimes ended up serving no greater purpose in the long run. But someone had to do this infiltration mission and being that the Blade of Marmora's forces had been stretched thin, they had no choice but to send their most juvenile agent.

From the outside, he was galra. Light, purple skin, with markings adorning his cheeks. His head was covered in dark hair, almost black; but in the light, it was quite obviously a deep plum shade. His violet eyes were offset by yellow sclera. But despite his appearance, he was a halfbreed runt, smaller than most galra in stature and more quick to temper than his fellow marmora members.

Since he was a small cub, he had, and still was, working long and hard to prove himself. Sure, this mission opportunity was a massive display of trust. That didn't mean he had to like it. He had been aboard this galra ship for a considerable number of movements and had began to get restless. This vessel seemingly had nothing to offer that they didn't already have. But there was a reason he was sent here, right?

Today it seemed like he might actually be able to find out. The higher ranking officers on the ship had seemingly disappeared, locked away in meetings or whispering secretively with one another. Normally he wouldn't have bat an eye at this sort of thing. The really suspicious part was that security seemed spread incredibly thin. With the exception of an officer here or there, it had been mostly sentries. Even still, there weren't many of those.

This wasn't one of those heavily guarded ships. It didn't need to be. They didn't generally transport prisoners or classified cargo. It was mostly just parts for other things like technology or weaponry. Even for a minimum security vessel like this one, there still should have been sentires on patrol in every hall.

Keith rounded each corner, only seeing sentires in a couple of halls. Whether something weird was going on or not, he didn't care. This was the perfect time to strike and get the data that Regris had asked of him. Movements of sitting around on this ship and he'd finally be able to get off of it.

The young galra entered the control room, checking all directions to ensure no one had spotted him entering. Once he got up to the panel, he pulled out the device Regris had given him to store data. Hacking wasn't his forte, but the other marmora member had made it simple with the little gadget.

Keith inserted it into the system's drive, tapping his foot impatiently as he waited for each file to upload onto it. He felt it had been an eternity before the process was finally completed and with a sigh of relief, finally was able to exit the control room.

He headed down the hallway quickly, eager to begin planning a smooth escape route. If he was too sloppy about it he risked either getting captured, or the possibility of being identified and placed in the system, making him unable to do these sort of assignments anymore. Although, the latter didn't sound too bad to him.

Seeing a couple of officers ahead of him, Keith lessened his pace, not wanting to draw any suspicion to himself. As he passed, he could hear them talking, their tones hushed and eyes darting about to ensure the wrong people didn't hear them. "-Yeah in sector C!" He heard one of them quietly exclaim.

Sector C? That was the lower level of the vessel. To his knowledge, not much was down there except some storage and a few empty rooms. So what could they have possibly been keeping down there? His brow arched as he fought a small, internal war as to whether he should continue on with his escape or investigate.

Curiosity ultimately won out, but at least he could say he put up a good enough mental fight. If it was some really good intel, then maybe they wouldn't be so upset with him for going against the direct instructions of the mission. The last thing he needed after this snooze fest was a long lecture.

Keith continued on his path, feather-footed and cautious. Despite the lack of officers, he felt uneasy. The hair on the back of his neck stood up, almost as if his body had been telling him there was something in this direction.

Every sentry he passed was not given a second glance. He didn't linger in one area for too long. It was as if he had been pulled forward by something; an energy, beckoning him- no, demanding him to come their way. A pit settled in his stomach, discomfort crashing in waves.

When he finally approached a door with four guards standing outside of it, he knew that the source of this feeling had to be coming from within. But what was it? Why did it need to be so heavily guarded? It was strange for a prisoner to require one guard, let alone four. But Keith knew he had to get in there. This feeling would not subside until he did.

Violet eyes shot about the hall as he continued walking. He was searching for some way in without having to go through those guards. Keith knew beyond a doubt that he could do it, but taking out those guards would only mean more would come.

His gaze locked onto a grate in the ceiling, most likely linked to the ventilation system. It was perfect. Knocking out a grate in the middle of the hall in front of a number of guards, however, was not perfect. Keith would have to slip into an empty room if he wanted to pull this off. Even then, it was still a gamble.

Not every room was guaranteed to have a vent in it. If the cell he was aiming to get into didn't have one, then the entire plan was thrown out the window. He would simply cut his losses and leave before he got himself into trouble. At least, that's what the rational side of his brain told him to do.

Keith slipped into a few different rooms before he finally found one with a grate. He made quick work of taking it apart, hoisting himself inside, and heading to where he needed to go. Sure, he had a general idea of where he was headed; but it was more the instinct and the pulling feeling in his gut that pushed him onward.

Each move forward only caused that feeling in his stomach to tighten. Feelings of anxiety, loss, pain; all were present and all felt like his own feelings. But they weren't. These were things that he hadn't experienced since childhood. So why now?

Now hovering over a grate, those feelings seemed to reach their peak. They were so intense he could swear his heart would pound right out of his chest. He pressed through the heavy emotion and kicked in the grate, a feeling of satisfaction running over him as it clamoured against the floor below.

Dropping himself into the room, it was as if all of the feeling from before had washed away. Now, with his head straight, Keith began to search around the room. It was dark, the only light provided being a thin, illuminating stripe along the four walls. Even still, his eyes were quick to adjust and he was able to take in the room in moments.

Barren was the only way to describe it. There was no furnishing as a far as the eye could see; though this was standard for prison cells. This made it easy for him to spot the only other being in the room.

A small mass lay upon the floor. Long strands of auburn hair strewn about in a mass of waves. Keith leaned down, brushing hair out of the other's face. His eyes grew wide in both shock and confusion. A girl. But not just any girl. She looked like a primitive, save for a set of pointed ears and lilac markings beneath her eyes. She was so still he had to wonder if she was even breathing.

He lowered his head to her chest, trying to listen for any sign of life. That's when a small gasp sounded in his ears. Keith's head shot up, his violet eyes now staring at a large set of gold ones with fuschia pupils in the center. Her mouth opened wide, as if she were about to let out a loud wail.

Keith acted quickly, his hand clamping over her mouth as he shushed her gently. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I swear. I'm here to help you." Her expression quickly shifted from one of shock and fear to anger. Keith felt a sharp pain in his fingers as her teeth clamped down onto his hand. He quickly retracted, exhaling a quiet yelp.

"What the-!"

"Don't touch me!" She spat, now trying to scoot her body as far away from him as possible.

"Okay, okay! Just keep your voice down." He whisper yelled. She gave a defiant nod, her lips pressing into a tight line. "Why are they keeping you here?" He asked. It didn't make any sense. She didn't look like a rebel and he certainly didn't recognize her species, with the exception of her looking reminiscent of a human.

"I don't know! Nobody will tell me!" She returned his whisper-yell tone, but that didn't stop him from peeping over his shoulder to make sure nobody would come bursting through the door. This didn't make any sense. A strange girl, held under maximum watch, and she didn't even know why.

He gave her another once over. The prisoner garb displayed minimum skin, but from what he could see, she was covered in a number of bruises and cuts. He couldn't just leave her here. Keith drawled out a sigh, "Alright. We're getting out of here."

"How?" Her brows furrowed in confusion. Keith looked around, then up and pointed to the vent overhead. Her expression remained same. Then she shook her head. "That won't work."

"What? Why?" It was the simplest and quietest means of escape. Anything else would involve a fight.

"I can't walk." She stated matter-of-factly. His mouth hung open, stunned at that little revelation. She shrugged at his surprise. "They stuck me with some sort of drug. Now my legs are all shaky and I just fall over."

"Well, shit." This threw a wrench in his plan. Well, he supposed they would just have to go out guns blazing. That was more his style anyway, Keith stood up, stretched a few crooks out of his joint here and there, and then nodded. "Alright then. Guess we'll have to just blast our way out."


	2. Chapter 2

"I said you're not allowed to touch me."

"You're joking."

"Nope."

"That's the only way you're getting out of here!" Keith's brows scrunched together, his face contorting in annoyance. She sure was stubborn. He had made himself more than clear that he wasn't going to hurt her. Why did she have to be so difficult. "You can't walk. The only way we're getting out of here is if I carry you."

She huffed, her face settling into a pout. She didn't have to like it, but he could see reluctant understanding washing over her features. "Fine, whatever."

"Okay. Now that that's over, onto the rest of the plan." Keith walked over by the door, placing his back flat against the wall. His eyes shifted from her, back to the door, and then back to her. He began counting down on his fingers. At the last finger he pointed to her, mouthing the world; "Go.".

The girl began wailing loudly, her voice shaking and radiating with faux pain. It took only a few moments before the door was pushed open, two of the four guards from outside storming in. They looked at the small female laying on the floor in confusion.

With their backs turned, it took Keith only a few seconds to take them out. He stood over the now unconscious guards, his arms crossed over his chest, a brow perched high. "These are the guys they trusted to guard a top secret inmate. Really?"

The girl across from him snickered for a moment. It was short lived, because soon she was pointing and yelling out "Hey! Behind you!" Keith pivoted, now facing the other two guards. He slid between them, cutting them down quickly as he went. She looked at him in amazement. "You're a real beast, huh?"

Keith ignored the comment, now bending down to pick her up and throw her on his back. While close to the ground, he picked up one of the guards' blasters and handed it to her. "Since I'm carrying you, I'm gonna need you to watch my back."

"I don't know how to use this thing." She protested.

"Aim and squeeze the trigger." He said flatly.

She nodded her understanding and then they were off down the hall. Sentries approach from behind, causing Keith's smaller companion to turn slightly and fire a shot at them. The blast collided with metal, causing one of the sentires to go barreling backward. "I got one!"

"Good job. Keep it up." His lips turned up into a gentle smile, that only disappeared when a sentry approached. Sentries and officers from the front would be struck down by his blade. Those coming from the rear were guaranteed to eat blaster beams. Each one she hit resulted in a jovial laugh from the girl. Once again, Keith would grin.

Now the alarms were blaring, making it impossible to hear anything else. Accompanied with flashing lights and gathering sentires, it was all enough to send anyone into sensory overload. He could feel the small female burrow her face into his shoulder. He assumed her eyes were sensitive after being in that dark cell.

There were sentires and officers gathering from every direction. They were so close to the escape pods. They just needed to get a little farther. The window of opportunity was quickly dwindling. If they wanted to get out, he would have to do something crazy.

He had to shift quickly and carefully to move the girl from his back to his front. She let out a surprised yelp and Keith replied with a quick; "Sorry about this!" His arms wrapped around her protectively, his hands being careful to brace her head as he dove and slid between a group of sentries. Just a little ahead of him he could see doors that lead to the cargo bay. There were always escape pods there.

Keith pulled a small explosive from the pouch attached to his belt, pulled the clip, and tossed it into the gathering chaos. He slammed the device Regris had given him into the door's access panel, prompting the doors to slam shut. Behind the heavy, metal door he could hear the loud booming and aluminum clattering against the hard floor. Once more, his face twisted up into another grin.

They weren't out of the woods yet, however. Keith raced towards the closest pod, tossing the girl in first and then climbing in after. As the ship started up, he could see the bay doors beginning to close. If they didn't make it out of those, they would be sitting ducks. He looked back at his small companion, noting the concern on her face. "Don't worry, we're gonna make it out of here."

Keith made quick work of activating the thrusters, his eyes narrowing as the pod shot forward. The closer they got, the more narrow their escape became. There was a brief tick where he was almost certain they would crash instead of making it out. But by the grace of some god, they managed to slip through the now closed doors, out into open space.

A sigh of relief passed his lips. The young galra knew that there would be ships after them, but it would be a few doboshes before they managed to dispatch and lock onto his location. Not only that, but he could outfly just about any galra ship that came his way.

His attention turned back to the quiet female. He wanted to address her, but found that they hadn't even had any sort of introduction. "I'm Keith, by the way. You got a name?"

"What a strange name." She mumbled. His name was noticeably 'un-galra' to anyone who heard it. "Cathriya." she stated, what he was assuming was, her name. "At least...I'm pretty sure that's it."

He snickered for a second. There was something strange about her name. Something almost… Earthly? Like Katya or Catherine. He'd met a few Catherines back home as a child, but they were always grown women. It wasn't a name that he felt suited someone who looked so young. Kitty maybe? Or Katie? She seemed whimsical and hotheaded. Such a regal sounding name didn't quite fit. "I'm gonna call you Katie." He declared.

"Katie?" she looked at him, as though pondering the new nickname, and then shrugged, "I like it."

Keith smiled, but despite this new revelation, he had one more thing on his mind. "Where are you from, anyway?" he had been wondering since the moment he had come across her. Never in his years had he come across he race. She wasn't human, that much he was sure of.

The now declared 'Katie' gave another shrug. "Don't know."

Keith's brows knitted together, his confusion furthering. "How do you not know?"

Gold eyes shifted around, as if she would find the answers somewhere in the small pod. "I don't remember much of anything, except crashing and being picked up by those purple jerks."

"Purple jerks?" Keith laughed, finding more humor in the comment than offense.

"You're purple, but you don't seem like a jerk, really." Katie pointed out. He assumed she was probably a bit confused by the Galra Empire as a whole. But if Keith had to guess, throughout history, there were always those who opposed the majority. Certainly that concept was something she should still be able to grasp.

"I'm with a resistance force. We're galra, but we're not with them." Keith knew he really shouldn't talk about the Blade of Marmora without permission, but considering this situation, he didn't see how it could hurt.

"How'd a galra boy end up with a name like 'Keith'? Doesn't sound too 'galra' to me." Katie was looking at him with a sort of mocking look. Keith's eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"It's not a galra name. I have a galra name, but I prefer Keith." He didn't want to divulge much further. It wasn't really any of her business. Then again, he had pressed her for her own personal information. So, it wasn't really fair to look at it that way.

"What's your galra name?" Katie asked, her face stretching into a smirk.

"It doesn't matter." He answered back.

"That doesn't seem very fair." Came her response, coupled with her ever present pout.

Keith sighed, running a hand through his hair. She had a point. That didn't mean he had to like it. "Yorak." He answered flatly.

"Yorak?" She mused. "Yeah. I like Keith more."

Keith turned his attention from the conversation, back to where he was flying. There had been a few fighters following them, but he managed to shake them with little effort. Now it was time to get back to where he had stashed his own ship.

Hidden on a small, uninhabited planet between a few of its rings was his ship. Keith had landed the pod with no trouble and quickly after, picked up Katie and carried her back to his own ship. He was thankful that there were two seats, as opposed to having her sit on the floor like in the pod.

"Alright. Before we go, I have to contact headquarters and tell them what's going on." Without another word, Keith began his call, feeling a little anxious. He had gone against orders, he had most likely been identified, and now he was toting around a small, strange girl. Yeah. They weren't going to be happy.

Now on the screen, he could see a very familiar face, his lips pressing into a tight line before speaking, "Hey, Mom-"

"Keith," she started, her brow arched high, arms crossed over her chest, "what happened?"

The young galra sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I got the intel we needed. And uh…there's one other thing." Keith then gestured to the female next to him, his expression sheepish and unknowing.

He watched his mother's eyes dart from him to Katie and then back to him. Her expression was unreadable. It seemed like an eternity of silence before he received a response. "Come back to base. We'll talk then."

Just like that, the screen was flipped off. Keith released a breath he hadn't realised he had been holding in. It wasn't like his mother was the type of person to get unreasonably upset or be over critical; but being that he was her son, she always wanted him to succeed and do well. While she may not have seemed angry, he was sure she knew that some of the other blade members might not feel the same way.

"You look just like her." Katie mused. Keith rolled his eyes. As if he hasn't heard that a million times.

"Alright, let's get going." Just like that, they were off. Keith wasn't quite sure what to expect when they got back to headquarters, but he was hoping the powers that be would be easy on him this time.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hi hI! Thanks for the continued support! I've been getting a lot of questions about Keith's heritage. He's still half galra and half human. However, instead of his human genes being the more dominant appearance wise, it's his galra genes. You'll learned more about his upbringing and biology as the story progresses. Sorry I can't tell you guys more!

...

' _It's fine. You got the intel. You made it back in one piece. What's there to be mad about?'_ Keith stood, fists clenched at his side, a stern expression plastered on his face. Katie, on the other hand, was sitting in a chair, yet somehow mentally buzzing about the room, elated by any bit of technology her eyes came across. She would point at things, touch them, ask what they were. Compared to her demeanor for the rest of the time he'd know this strange girl, she was a sudden ray of curious sunshine.

Keith's brow arched at her and he answered all of her questions, but once the doors slid open, he was quick to shush her and request she calm down. Through those doors came his mother. She moved swiftly and with purpose. Keith lowered his head, preparing himself for some sort of lecture. However, when she passed him, he went wide eyed and turned his attention to Katie.

His mother approached her, looking her up and down, her eyes narrowing and widening ever so often. "Incredible." She mused. She reached out, poking at the smaller female's markings and then her ears. "Where did you find her?"

Keith tilted his head in confusion. "You know what she is?" He asked. Judging by his mother's expression, this girl was far from normal.

The older woman's brows knit together. "She's Altean…but Altea was wiped out decaphoebs ago." Through all of the poking and prodding, Katie seemed a little less impressed than she had a few ticks ago.

Altean? Keith had heard the name, but he'd never seen one and they were rarely spoken about. No wonder the galra seemed so interested in her. A race, thought to be extinct. Did this mean there were more like her? How does one even survive the mass destruction of a planet?

"Can you stop touching me, please?" She asked, her tone flat and dry. Keith frowned. At least she asked her nicely, instead of biting her.

"My apologies." The older woman extended her hand, expecting the smaller female to shake it. However, Katie only looked at it in confusion. "I'm Krolia. You are?"

"Cathriya," She started, then pointed to Keith, "He's been calling me Katie, though." Krolia nodded slowly in response. Her hand rested on her chin, as she continued to observe the other individual she had previously been prodding.

"How did you survive the destruction of Altea?" she asked her.

Katie shrugged, prompting Krolia to give her yet another confused look. "She has amnesia, I think." Keith chimed in, hoping that would satisfy his mother. Of course, it was far from a satisfying answer. There was so much to learn about this girl but if she couldn't even remember, then how were they to find out anything?

"What all do you remember?" Krolia finally asked.

Katie's eyes shifted from side to side, as if scanning her brain for any information she could possibly give. "Well, I know my name… And I know I was in a crash… I also know I was looking for someone but I can't quite place who. It's all… Fuzzy."

Krolia nodded with every word. Another few moments of pondering went by before she spoke again, "We thought all Alteans were dead. I've only ever come across two alteans, and even then, they're only half."

Keith turned to Krolia, his expression displaying shock at the new information. "Who?" Keith asked. He found it strange that, despite all of the stories he had heard from his mother's past, the meeting of a thought to be extinct race was not one of them.

"Well, Prince Lotor, though I've never actually met him. But his mother was an infamous, altean alchemist." Krolia paused, tapping her chin, as if pondering whether she should even finish what she was going to say. "And well… Shiro."

If Keith's eyes were wide before, that was nothing in comparison to this news. "Shiro is half Altean?" he asked, stunned.

Krolia nodded. "It's not like it's a huge secret or anything, but I suppose we've neglected to tell you up until now."

"You think?" Keith replied flatly. Shiro had been his mentor ever since he was a cub. Knowing that he was half altean was something he hadn't expected. With the exception of his bright, white hair and straight pointed ears, he didn't look much different than most galra. Even then, those characteristics weren't all that strange to Keith. Galra had a wide variety of traits, even amongst full galra. He had never thought twice about it.

He would have to talk to Shiro later. Right now, his attention was turned back to the small, altean girl. "We should probably do something about your legs." Keith said, catching Krolia's attention .

"What's wrong with her legs?" she asked.

"They gave her some immobilizing drug from what she was saying. I didn't know if Kolivan would be able to help." Kolivan had posed as a doctor on a number of galra ships, which meant he did have genuine medical expertise. Though, he wasn't sure if it was this was the doing of their medics or the druids. If it was the druids, they could be in a lot more trouble.

Krolia nodded in understanding, "Kolivan should be back here soon. We'll have him look at her then." Keith nodded back. There was a silence and then Krolia's sharp eyes turned to her son. "Now about you disobeying orders-"

"I got the intel didn't I?" came his reply. Keith had hoped, for one second, that Katie would be enough of a distraction to make his mom forget what he had done. But of course, nothing slipped past her.

"That's not the point, Keith." Though Krolia's voice never raised above a normal volume, she was stern and upfront. "You could have gotten seriously hurt. These plans and calculations were put in place to ensure your safety and the safety of the mission." He knew that it all came from a place of love. He also knew he made her worry too much.

"I'm sorry, Mom." Keith's head hung, shame evident on his face. If it had been someone else scolding him, he probably would have bit back more. But he knew better when it came to Krolia. She wasn't one to nitpick at him and any critique she gave was because she only wanted the best for him. "I'll be more careful next time."

Krolia was quick to accept his apology. "You'll probably be put back on a probationary period. No solo missions." He hated that sort of thing but he understood. It would be a best case scenario. They could have easily thrown him back on trainee status. "Alright. Let's get your friend to the medical bay. We can tend to her other wounds while we wait for Kolivan."

Keith carried Katie on his back once more. The whole way down the hall she was once again pointing to things, asking questions, wanting to touch, and gabbering on and on about tech in the base. He wasn't quite sure where her fascination came from. He supposed he could just chalk it up to her amnesia.

They arrived at the medical bay within a couple short minutes. Keith set Katie down on one of the examination tables. He could see her jolt at the cold metal. "You don't have to lay down. You can just sit there." He told her, not wanting to jar her. She nodded slowly.

Krolia quickly retrieved an antiseptic and other sorts of supplies to bandage and clean her wounds. "Where are you hurt?" She asked Katie in a gentle tone. The smaller female simply made a wide gesture that had a way of saying 'all over'. Katie's eyes kept moving over to Keith and then back to Krolia. The older woman's brow arched high in understanding. "Keith, get out."

"Wha-" He began to rebuttal, but immediately quit talking. Of course she probably didn't want him in the room while she was getting her wounds tended to. He was sure that would be far from ideal to a young female. Without another word, Keith turned on his heels and left. He figured it would be a good time to hunt down Regris and give him the intel he had acquired.

He found him in the computer room, the masked galra's gaze fixed on the screens in front of him, as his fingers moved rapidly along the touch screens. Keith was quiet, not wanting to disrupt him if it was important.

"Lurking in the doorway doesn't really do you much good." Regris chimed in. Of course he knew he was there. Keith was quiet and unknown to most other beings, but to fellow blade members, he may as well have been stomping around and blaring sirens. These people had raised him. They'd be able to pick him out from a crowd of thousands of people.

"I've got the intel you wanted." Keith walked forward, extending his hand that held the device. Regris didn't turn around. Instead, his tail whipped behind him, grasping the device and pulling it to his person. He was quick to insert the device and begin examining what was on it.

It was about ten doboshes before he finally spoke again. "Nothing." Was his reply. Keith sighed in frustration. He had spent all of that time on his ship, only for it to be pointless? That was just part of the job. He knew that. But it didn't make the situation any less agitating.

"Don't beat yourself up over it, kid. It happens." Regris said.

Keith frowned. "I know. I'm just not a huge fan of wasting time." Regris nodded in response.

"Looks like Kolivan is back." He mused, never turning away from the monitors. Keith swallowed hard. While neither his mother or Regris gave him a very hard time of his impulsive handling of the mission, he knew Kolivan would have a bit more issue with it. It wasn't to say Kolivan was harsh, but he did calculate every detail of the missions carefully. Disregarding protocol was almost offensive to him.

Keith left Regris to his devices, knowing he wasn't going to get much more in the way of conversation from him. He supposed it would be fitting to go and face the music now, rather than later.

He headed towards where he knew the ship would be landing. Keith's fists clenched and unclenched at his side. He knew what he was going to say. 'You're too impulsive', 'You need to learn to take orders', 'You could have jeopardized the mission'. Those sort of things.

As he approached the docking bay, Keith's eyes were immediately drawn to a head of white hair. His eyes grew wide and stunned. "Shiro-!" Keith breathed out. The older galra gave him an exhausted smile.

How long had it been since he had last seen him? Movements? Maybe even phoebs? It was hard to tell. Keith walked closer, his mind not even noting that Kolivan had been standing there as well. Shiro's arm was slung over Kolivan's shoulder, allowing the other to support his weight.

"Will you help me get Shiro to the medical bay, Keith?" Kolivan asked. Without hesitation, Keith moved to Shiro's other side. Violet eyes widened suddenly. Now, in the place of Shiro's right arm, was a cold, metal prosthetic.

Keith lifted the artificial arm, slinging it over his own shoulders. "What happened?" he asked, voice shaky and concerned.

"I-I'm not even sure." Came Shiro's hesitant reply. Keith didn't know what to say. Instead, he settled for silence. It always stunned him how things were always changing. Those who were constant in your life disappear. Bad thing happening to loved ones. New people crashing into your life, seemingly out of the blue. In his short years, everything always changed so rapidly.

Then again, he supposed, that was just the way the universe worked.


	4. Chapter 4

The walk to the medical bay was long and silent. Kolivan wasn't much of a talker. On top of that, Keith felt a certain discomfort settling between himself and his mentor. Shiro had always been phenomenal at picking up on Keith's emotions. So, as if to quel his unease, he offered the younger galra a smile.

They came up to the medical bay, Kolivan's hand hovering over the access panel. He hesitated when a loud, high pitched yelp echoed from behind the door.

"I don't care about infections, it stings!"

Keith hung his head, smacking the palm of his hand into his face.

He had completely forgotten she was here. Judging by Kolivan and Shiro's expressions, Krolia had not reached out to them to let them know the situation before they got back. "Kolivan, I wouldn't-" before Keith could truly protest, Kolivan pressed his hand to the access panel, the doors sliding open.

The room was in utter disarray; cotton balls thrown about, tiny splatters of blood littering the examination table Katie had been on, and Krolia, stand in the middle of the room, her hands planted firmly on her hips as she stared at an upward angle. "Infection can lead to disease. Then you're dead. Do you want to be dead, Katie?"

Keith's eyes moved from his less-than-amused mother, up to a cabinet where the small altean had perched herself; clad in dressings to cover her chest and a pair of loose fitting pants that he assumed his mother had given her. She didn't reply to Krolia, only curled into herself and pouted. "How'd she get up there?" Keith asked.

"She climbed." Krolia deadpanned.

Keith blinked a few times while his gaze shifted between Krolia and Katie. "But her legs-?"

"Are fine." Krolia started, sighing and rubbing between her temples. "Whatever they gave her started to wear off when we came in here." She pointed up to Katie, her back turned to the others in the room. From that position, a few large gashes, similar to claw marks, were visible running along her back.

Keith frowned, before calling out, "Katie, you need to let her clean those." While he couldn't see her face, he was certain she was pouting. "I know it burns, but that's because it's killing the bacteria." He moved closer to where Katie had situated herself. There was a long standoff. Him staring up at her patiently, while she would glance over her shoulder at him in defiance.

Finally, she sighed, turning around and preparing herself to come down. Keith stretched his arms out to her, a silent confirmation that if she leapt down, he would catch her. Katie pushed herself off the ledge of the cabinet without hesitation and Keith caught her with little to no effort, being careful not to grab anywhere that might cause her pain or discomfort.

"Can someone explain what's going on?" came Shiro's voice. Krolia, Keith, and Katie all turned to the two odd men out. Shiro's eyes suddenly grew wide. "Wait, is she-?"

"Keith picked up this little altean on his mission." Krolia explained. "However, she doesn't seem to have any recollection of how she got there or where she came from." Kolivan nodded along, taking in every word thoughtfully.

Shiro, on the other hand, continued to gape. Wide eyed and confused, he spoke up once more "What is going on?" he said, sounding more like it was a question for himself than anything. The rest looked at him, brows furrowed and concern littering their features. He was quick to pick up on this. "It's just that… She's not the only one."

Now it was time for everyone else to stare, awestruck. Katie was the first to chime in. "Really? There's more like me?!" she made quick work of wiggling out of the grip Keith had on her and making her way over to where Shiro stood, still being supported by Kolivan. "I kept feeling like I was looking for something, or someone, maybe they're it."

"He didn't seem to remember much either." Shiro stated. His eyes scanned over her features, taking in every little detail that gave evidence to her altean heritage. In turn, she seemed to do the same. His ears, while in a similar shape to her own, appeared a bit longer a turned up more. His skin was purple, but with more blue undertones than Keith or Krolia. While the markings under her eyes were lilac and sickle shaped, his were as white as the hair on top of his head and were more like two arrow heads, pointing at the thick scar across his nose. His eyes, a solid yellow, were the only thing that looked truly galra about him.

"Krolia said you're half altean." Katie said, more of an inquiry than a statement. Shiro nodded, confirming what they had been told. "So, if alteans have been gone for so long, how are you here?"

Shiro gave a sort of hollow laugh, exhaustion raking through his body. Kolivan moved to help Shiro sit in one of the nearby chairs. "Well, my relatives on my father's side were altean. They hid away on a small, primitive planet. The galra invaded and discovered them and that's when my father met my mother. That's the short version, anyway."

Katie frowned. She could tell by his demeanor and the delivery that his story was one without a happy ending. Krolia was the next to speak up in the group. "The other altean; where is he now?" she asked.

Shiro shook his head and sighed, his gaze now turned down to his lap. "We got separated. I couldn't find out where they took him." Another solemn silence fell over the room.

"Alright, well," Krolia began, turning to the altean girl, "Katie, those wounds." The younger female sighed, begrudgingly stomping back over to the examination table and sitting down. "When I'm done with Katie, we'll take a look at you, Shiro."

Kolivan cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. "Before that, Krolia, Keith, could I have a moment in the hall?" The other two nodded, following Kolivan out of the room. "I wanted to talk to you two about Shiro." Keith and Krolia both nodded. "When I found him he was being held by Haggar's druids. I'm not sure what was done to him or why, but I wanted to ask that if you notice anything strange about him, please tell me."

"Could it be because he's part altean?" Keith asked. There was something going on with all of these occurrences and the one common factor seemed to be those of altean ancestry. But why had they resurfaced now in particular? It didn't make any sense for a race that was thought to have been wiped out to suddenly be resurfacing.

"That could be part of it." Kolivan replied, a bit thoughtful. "Speaking of which, I wanted to talk about the girl as well."

"What about her?" Keith said, his tone a bit defensive. He could already tell where this was going. Outsiders weren't really welcomed in the blade headquarters. Keith knew Kolivan would be upset she was there, but he would be damned if he tried to kick her out now.

"She can't stay here, Keith. You know that." Kolivan was always the bearer of bad news. While he was used to it, that certainly didn't mean he enjoyed it.

Keith's teeth ground together, his face visibly contorting into an expression of annoyance. "She doesn't have anywhere else to go."

"There are plenty of rebel bases that could take good care of her." Came Kolivan's rebuttal.

"She has no memories and she's obviously scared. I can't just abandon her! She trusts me!" Keith stood his ground, fists clenched at his side, brows furrowed, and chest puffed out slightly. "I don't care about the rules. Katie is staying with me."

Krolia deemed it time to intervene, stepping between Kolivan and her enraged son. "Kolivan, if I may; Keith does have a point. I don't believe she would even be safe at a rebel base. They are not as concealed as our base and in the case of an attack she would certainly be in great danger. The empire are up to something and she is a piece to the puzzle we cannot afford to lose."

Kolivan was silent for a long while, his gaze never meeting Keith's. When he finally spoke, it was preceded by a long sigh. "We'll discuss this more later, Krolia. I need to go speak with Regris and some of the others first."

Krolia nodded her response. As Kolivan left, Keith turned to his mother, a look on his face resembling gratitude. "I need you to understand, Keith, you need to be mindful of who you get attached to. Had she not been who she is, there would be no convincing Kolivan or the other blades."

"I know that." Keith replied. Keith couldn't explain why he had gotten so defensive. He couldn't explain why he felt such a need to protect her. Maybe it came back to what he felt when they first met. The anxiety, fear, and pain that had washed over him moments before they met. The young galra wasn't even certain she was the reason for the feelings. However, something in his gut told him she was and that she needed him.

They had walked back into the medical bay. Krolia tended to Katie and Shiro's wounds, while Keith stood by, silently observing. By the end of it all, exhaustion was evident amongst them. A deep desire for sleep was quickly overtaking Keith as he had begun to nod off.

"Keith," Krolia called, causing him to stir out of his daze. His eyes focused on his mother, who offered him a small smile. "Why don't you and Katie head off to get some sleep. I'll help Shiro back to his room."

Keith nodded. He then noticed that Katie had situated herself in the chair shiro had previously been occupying. She was curled into herself, eyes closed and breath even. Well, they had definitely been through a lot. It was understandable that she had fallen asleep.

He walked over to the chair, scooped her up carefully so as not to wake her, and headed out of the room with only a small glance and a smile back at his mother and Shiro. However, the walk down the hall had felt like an eternity. Each step reminded him of the aching in his legs. It had been so long since he had gotten to sleep in his own bed.

Then it hit him. He couldn't sleep in his bed. Not if she was there too. And he certainly wasn't going to have her sleep on the floor. Keith resisted a deep, frustrated groan. He hadn't thought this through.

His thoughts were quickly interrupted by a soft, almost inaudible whine. Violet eyes shifted down to the small female in his arms. Her brows were knitted tightly together, eyes squeezed shut, while her lips quivered. Keith stopped moving, concern washing over him.

"Katie, are you al-" He began, but quickly silenced himself when it sounded like she was about to speak.

"Don't go." The words were quiet and clear. "Matt, please-" His eyes grew wide. A name? But whose? Could it have been the other altean Shiro had met? Keith sighed, opting to continue on his path down the hall. All the way she whimpered and called out to this person. There were points where he could swear she was crying. For the first time since they had met, he once again had that feeling. That feeling of pain. Loss. Fear.


End file.
